(S03E19) If there is one complaint I have about Medium, it is that I think they have passed up a lot of opportunities for ongoing stories. Sure, we have the yearly Push episode, and the occasional appearance of Michael, but the show has the stuff to carry plots for longer arcs. That's a big part of why I was so interested in hearing about this four episode run leading to the end of the third season. Now that we have the first of those episodes in our rear view mirror, I'm even more excited about what they have planned to wrap things up. This was another example of something we have seen before from the Medium writers. Splitting the episode into two parts, one dealing with our case of the week, and the other focusing on the DuBois family adventure. I thought the balance was just right.
If I had to pick between the two halves, I liked the family angle a little better, mostly because of some great work by Jake Weber. Just the fact that they took advantage of the ramifications of "Joe Day Afternoon" was great. What really sold that part of the episode was the change in Joe. This was not the Joe we have come to know over the past 50-odd episodes. He was sullen, and his usual even-keel, mild-mannered nature was gone. Instead he was short, and quick to anger. He even took it out on Allison as he dismissed her, "You had a dream. You told someone. They didn't believe you, but it all worked out in the end."
That was also shown to great effect as he dealt with Ariel and her quest to go to camp with her friends. Regular Joe would have handled that situation in a completely different manner. That story offered up another hint at what we could see in a fourth season. Ariel was almost spooky as she told Joe, " It doesn't matter where you put it. I'll still know where it is." Does this mean that we are going to see even more of the girls and their growing abilities? Obviously it can't dominate the show, but there is room for some interesting stories to be told. It's also worth noting that there was more Marie than usual in the episode. And she does remain the cutest kid on television.
Meanwhile, in the other half of the story, I spent about half of the episode confused and one step behind. The older sister/younger sister twist was clever, and well executed. It didn't all start to click in until they revealed that Peter had been locked up for eight years. Then the math took over and the fog lifted.
Until we got to that point I was operating under the theory of a good twin and a bad twin, seperated at birth. The scene in the apartment where Allison discovered, quite abruptly, that Jenny (Elisabeth Moss, who was great in Invasion last season) wasn't a ghost really added to that misdirection. They did kind of telegraph that scene though. Devalos asking if she wants to go alone, and the landlady fiddling with the lock. The only way to make it more obvious that something bad was going to happen would have been to have the robot from Lost In Space pop out and say "Danger Allison DuBois." Still a good scene though, and I liked the reactions of Devalos and Scanlon afterwards as well.
After all of that good stuff though, I was just about to turn on the episode at the end. When Joe woke up and decided everything was fine, I felt an eye-roll coming on. I'm so glad that was a dream, because that makes it work perfectly. Yes, Joe is going to get out of his funk. He has to, because this is Joe and Allison and they can work through pretty much anything. But it can't be that easy.
Overall, I was really happy with this episode, and am looking forward to seeing how it all progresses as they wrap up the season over the next few weeks. A nice way to kick it all off. I'm giving this one a 5, out of 7. And finally, before I go, I want to say thanks to Sheila over at Medium Dreams. She's been a great source of information about Medium, but now she's moving on to tackle other adventures. Good luck with everything Sheila.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
4-26-2007 @ 10:36AM
Kathy said...
I think Joe is due for an emmy. I have loved the show from the very beginning and Joe's character is exsquisitely performed like no other character I have ever seen. Where had this actor been hiding before and why hasn't he been nominated for any awards?!!!
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4-26-2007 @ 12:22PM
Brett said...
Kathy, I would agree with you that Jake Weber is deserving of an Emmy nomination for his work this season, especially over the last few episodes. However, in my perfect little tv award world, he would be edged out, narrowly, by Kyle Chandler.
As to where he's been hiding, he's actually worked pretty regularly in film and on tv for almost twenty years. I first became a fan of his work with the short lived American Gothic.
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4-26-2007 @ 12:40PM
Europa said...
Hear, hear Kathy! I've often said and wondered the same thing since the beginning of the show. I some times wonder that since he's portrayal of Joe is so natural and seems so "effortless" is the reason TPTB aren't nominating him. It's sort of the “squeaky wheel” syndrome. He's not "chewing the future" when he's acting so he's not getting noticed by the people who should be paying attention.
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4-26-2007 @ 12:51PM
getsheila said...
I am so looking forward to the final shows of the Medium season. The writers are surprising me and scaring me (bastards!), making me sad, worried, happy, and not just a little bit verklempt. What a way to end a season.
I will miss writing Medium Dreams but it will be fun to just sit back and watch the show for no other reason that pure enjoyment. Thanks for the kudos, Brett.
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4-26-2007 @ 4:40PM
Betty said...
Another great episode! That Ariel - whoa nelly is she getting snarky!
Brett, I have to take up one issue with you though, Bridgette is the CUTEST kid on TV with Marie a close second!
Can't wait until the last shows of this season air to see it all play out. Remember at the end of the first season, they left us in a cliffhanger over the Dubois marriage with Allison in tears as Joe slept on the couch as he was feeling neglected because she was spending so much time on the serial killer case.
Yea, at least we had a little more Scanlon this episode. One thing I do miss is Allison confiding in Scanlon(When Push comes to Shove part 1) as he has confided in her (Four Dreams) about things happening with the family. I think the writers missed the boat on that. These two have become really good friends over the years and it's always nice to have someone to bounce your thoughts off of when things aren't going so smoothly.
I don't know what we will do at Medium Dreams without Sheila - she has done such a fabulous job!
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4-26-2007 @ 8:37PM
TomB said...
Medium is consistantly well written and well acted. You just never know what you're gonna get.
It's premise could very easily become formulaic, but the writers always surprise you.
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4-26-2007 @ 9:53PM
John said...
Help - cannot find answer.
I have to know - what happened to Joe? In this episode Joe goes back to work, has problems not fitting back in and does nothing for 2 days after which his boss contacts Allison saying maybe it is too soon and that maybe he needs outside help. I may have missed some episodes but what caused Joe to leave work?
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4-27-2007 @ 4:34PM
TomB said...
John, Joe was traumatized by a workplace shooting that happened in front of him.
Click on the "Medium" link at the top of this article and you can read about it from previous reviews.
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4-27-2007 @ 5:07PM
Brett said...
John, Tom has it right. The episode in question is "Joe Day Afternoon." I think that this episode, as originally conceived, would have made more sense to those that missed JDA, but there were changes made because of the recent shootings.
Patricia Arquette and Jake Weber appeared at the start of this episode to explain that. I'll be curious to see what they do with the eventual DVD release. Whether this one remains true to the aired version, or they put those scenes back in.
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4-30-2007 @ 10:48AM
Glen said...
My wife and I are fans and regularly try to figure out the plot twists before the show spells them out. We watched the TiVo'ed Episode 57: "No One To Watch Over Me" and came away thoroughly confused:
1)About the younger sister/older sister, which one was which?
2) About the body frozen in a block of ice - who was it?
3) About the young man who committed suicide leaving a note that said HE was the one who put the girl in the freezer.
4) About the father of the boy, doing prison time
5) About one of the sisters (the older one or the younger one) who was still alive enough to choke Alison.
6) And the flashback to flash forward???
7) And the condom filled with real diamonds found in the frozen corpse's stomach.
8) And one of the sisters discovering that what she thought were diamonds were just fakes?
Will one of you fellow "Medium" mavens just write back and tell me what the heck was happening? I'm not downing the episode or the other story about Joe's PTSD, I am just thoroughly confused as to what happened.
Thanks
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4-30-2007 @ 7:20PM
Annie said...
1)The younger sister went to tried to kill Alison.
2) The body frozen in a block of ice - is the older sister.
3) The young man who committed suicide leaving a note that said HE was the one who put the girl in the freezer. He is the son of the guy in prison & he was also murdered, by his girlfriend.
4) I don't understand your question.
5) See above.
6) ???
7) Either she swallowed delibrately or he made her, either way the prefect place to hide diamonds.
8) Younger sister.
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